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Flatbush Flyer

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Everything posted by Flatbush Flyer

  1. As is often the case with O: what you read in the O website FAQs and “reality” can be vastly different things. Might I suggest that, as you approach your twentieth cruise credit, you contact the O Club folks in Miami and enquirer about what you’ve got in mind for your complimentary 2 weeks on an O ship. Come to an agreement and go from there. That’s what has worked for us.
  2. Add to that that O Connoisseurs Club TAs are the first to know about the upgrade availability and you can inform your TA if you’re interested and what would be your OK price.
  3. IMO: Partial canal transit is like kissing your sister. Nonetheless, it is possible.
  4. …until it’s a problem. (Just one of the reasons why most premium/luxury lines still require all passengers on all itineraries to have passports).
  5. In this case, N/A Could mean “not applicable” if the tour is under $200 (as was the case under O Life where U.P. folks paid no premium for them. That said, however, I do agree that, under O Life, Unlimited Passport, was most often not as good a bottom line deal as was the YWYW option.
  6. …but are still useless for international air travel. Not having a passport with 6 months expiration leeway? Not a problem until it’s a problem - a very costly problem.
  7. No more illy coffee the Dom LaReserve is way overpriced. Save the money and buy some outstanding bottles of NorCal sparkling wines.
  8. They’ll be empty then… but the door will be locked.
  9. For one thing, you can’t be on the cruise just yet since Riviera is in Japan. Also, have you signed up for the 3/9 M&G?
  10. US residents with Medicare? Get a supplement that, when you leave the US, converts to regular emergency insurance which coordinates with GeoBlue.
  11. As is the case with the tours section of the O web, know that availability of culinary classes (like excursions) shown may be incorrect- particularly if you are on a multi-segment cruise. ALWAYS call O to confirm what’s available!!!
  12. Others don’t have SM (kept O Life where they had other perk choices). The online choices you still see is an option for them. You can upgrade to Prestige once onboard.
  13. O, for far longer than it’s consortium arrangement with NCLH, has not disaggregated its fares. And what many unfamiliar with the maritime world seem not to recognize, is that there can be substantial costs to a cruise line each time an originally scheduled port is cancelled by O (rather than by the port itself) or replaced for whatever reason. Not only may there still be charges for labor, tugs et al. at an O cancelled port, there are the new charges for a replacement port that O does not pass on to its passengers. Add to that the cost of time and effort in possible navigational and fuel charges as well as added food and beverage expenses during missed port events and it should quickly become apparent that no ship’s master ever wants to modify the original itinerary if it’s at all possible. That said, if a narrow one-sided view of port charges is that important to some folks, they should definitely consider changing cruise lines or at least get travel insurance that covers reimbursement for missed port taxes.
  14. I don’t know. The SF Chronicle bo longer carries his syndicated travel ombudsman column, which I seem to remember often dealt with issues that involved North Americans traveling abroad. That said, I do know that his Elliott.org staff will, at least, reply to reasonable issue requests by providing good contact info for company leadership folks that can get consumers one step closer t solving their own problems. I also know that when he chose to write about a travel issue with carriers that included land, air and sea, he usually got results. So, can’t hurt to try Elliott since there’s no charge for the service (though donations to the non-profit are always welcome).
  15. If any one line lost out in the formation of the NCL Holding consortium, it was Norwegian. Cost cutting will certainly fall upon NCL before it touches Regent or especially Oceania whose former execs make up the bulk of NCLH leadership. O is our preferred cruise line, in part because the quality of ingredients and preparation is similar across all dining venues and specialty restaurants (never a charge) are differentiated only by focused menus and accompanying ambiance of the space. BTW, if you look at the daily net cost of a mostly inclusive premium line like Oceania and compare it to NCL once you’ve added all the extra costs ( like airfare, beverages, internet, etc)., you will be pleasantly surprised at the value.
  16. “No” to your “no.” it really depends on the cruise line and the legitimate reason why you want to retrieve your booking. With our preferred cruise line, if you have been a victim of fraud by a TA and/or the TA has been negligent in servicing your account in some significant way AND refuses to release your booking back to the cruise line, you can formally request the line’s reservations supervisors to return the booking to their control
  17. If you have a truly legitimate case for refunds or compensation related to travel, a great resource is Elliott.org which is a non-profit consumer advocacy organization started by syndicated travel columnist/ombudsman Christopher Elliott.
  18. Theoretically, thst switch should happen automatically since the onboard accounting system first applies non-refundable assets in your account against the running balance.
  19. Actually, on some cruises, up to four time a day (on sea days): morning, after lunch (e.g., Dottie’s “Men vs Women” Trivia), afternoon and evening.
  20. Apparently, you’re still “missing the boat.” CC is a forum for exchange of info about cruising. That it happens to have TA advertising is how it “pays the bills.”
  21. Your perception of a “small” population segment still means thousands of people new to non-mass market lines (many also being first time cruisers) annually. THOSE “newbies” deserve more than an inaccurate overgeneralization of “one size fits all” (which, BTW, characterizes most of those amateur advice posts.
  22. In addition to the advice in other posts on this thread, you may want to search here for the numerous (and very detailed) posts I (and other O Regulars) have made explaining the idiosyncrasies of (and strategies for) dealing with various O policies and practices including O Life, Simply More, Air Credit, Multi-Segment Cruise bookings, et al.
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